i've read in various forums that I shouldn't ship to italy

[lasantino]

hi, i recently sold a nice leather bag to a buyer in italy. I read in detail the restrictions regarding leather. It's not all leather. It's leather that is endangered .  Has anyone shipped a leather item to italy successfully? what steps did you take?

has anyone shipped a leather item to italy and it never made it? did you take the precautions and fill out the customs forms?  

help.... please give me any insights you personally have had.  I've read dozens of warnings on forums over the year. But I think people are misinterpreting the restrictions on leather.

[fab_finds4u]

There is no misinterpreting.

Google usps country conditions Italy

It says

Prohibitions (130)

Leather goods

[adamcartwright]

I use Ebay International Shipping (EIS) and let eBay figure all that out for me.

I would recommend you use it in the future.

[inhawaii]

I wouldn't take too much stock in what you read in "various forums" or on the internet in general  for that matter. I read that broccoli causes cancer. I would do as @adamcartwright suggested, ship it via EIS and let them worry about it. 

[dhbookds]

I've certainly read of Italian customs confiscating prohibited items, so I would not try to ship directly.

[dbfolks166mt]

     I have shipped several items to Italy but all have gone through EIS or a freight forwarder. I have never had any problems or issues. But as others have mentioned I would never ship directly unless you are 100% sure you fully understand the country's import rules and/or restrictions. 

[fab_finds4u]

You take the chance it will be found undeliverable if you send it EIS and eBay will refund and the bag won't  be returned.

[marnotom!]

The list of restricted and prohibited items listed on the USPS website for shipments to Italy applies to items handled through USPS.  You’re going to find a slightly different list on the FedEx website as that applies to items handled by FedEx, and you’ll find a slightly different version on the Canada Post website, and so on and so forth.  These sorts of lists are carrier-based and may or may not overlap with actual customs restrictions and prohibitions.  That’s likely why you’re getting all sorts of conflicting information, @lasantino.

If the leather in the purse is considered to be from an endangered species, I’d be uncomfortable shipping it internationally, given international treaties on that sort of thing.  Also, Italy’s handling of postal imports from non-EU countries is—How should I put it?—unpredictable at best.

Though as a Canadian buyer I’m not the biggest fan of the eIS service, I think using it in this instance would be a good use of the service if both you and your buyer are prepared for the possibility not to see it again.

[dbfolks166mt]

You take the chance it will be found undeliverable if you send it EIS and eBay will refund and the bag won't  be returned.

     Yea they do that out of their own pockets, gotta love the seller protections under EIS. 

[dryophelia]

@lasantino 

It's leather that is endangered

Is that a typo?

[cardxcraft]

When I used to ship internationally direct, I found Italy's postal service to be one of the worst, in terms of INR filings.  Which makes sense, as the Universal Postal Union had Italy ranked 28th to the high 30's previously.  Last year Italy attained a rank of 13, amongst 173 countries; which is a huge jump in ranking.  

But, as others have stated, I would ship using EIS, Ebay International Shipping Program (not to be confused with Ebay International Standard Delivery, which doesn't offer the same protections as EIS). 

You just need to enroll by going to account>shipping preferences>enroll in EIS, if offered to you as a seller.

Some notes: if you're using business policies and have exclusions set, your items will not show to buyers with addresses located in excluded countries.  Alternatively, the same will apply to any individual exclusions you have per listing.

[lasantino]

oh wait,  are you saying that if i ship eis,  ebay will cover the cost of the item it is not delivered or held up in customs?  the bag is not an endangered species. but it is a 500 bag and If eis will guarantee delivery and tracking.. I will do that.  Otherwise, I was going to cancel. I just can't afford to lose a 500 item.

[robbie31415]

If you use EIS all you gotta do is get it delivered to the US hub and you keep the sale if there are any issues.

No returns, no item not received, no customs issues.

EIS are the safest sales on eBay, even safer than domestic buyers.

Please note: EISD (Ebay International Standard Delivery) is NOT EIS and does not have the protections mentioned.

[stuff4divas]

@lasantino   yes, very safe method for int'l shipping and sellers are totally covered once the item is delivered to one of the domestic hubs, most likely the one in Illinois, here is the link for info>

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/shipping-items/setting-shipping-options/ebay-international-shippin...